Vardy Steps Aside From International Scene

Elvis Iwuamadi

6 months ago

Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy has all but confirmed his retirement from international football. Vardy had to wait until 2015 to make his England debut – coming on as a substitute in the goalless draw against the Republic of Ireland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin – and went gone on to earn 26 caps in total.

The 31-year-old has scored seven goals for his country and was part of the Three Lions’ squad that went to the 2016 European Championship and the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
However, with Gareth Southgate looking to promote youth, opportunities may be hard to come by for Vardy and he has taken the decision to make way for the next generation.

Speaking to the Guardian, he said: “To be honest with you, this has been on my mind for a while. I’m not getting any younger and you can see, to be fair to the gaffer, he wants to make it more youthful, which obviously had its benefits during the World Cup – we got to the semi-finals and finished fourth, which is equal to the furthest we have ever been on foreign soil.
“So I just said to Gareth that I think it’s probably best from now on, especially with the way he wants to go, to bring youngsters in who he thinks have got the ability and start nurturing them into international football.”